The present invention pertains generally to a guide wire capturing surgical instrument and, more particularly, to a cannulated guide wire surgical instrument used for driving bone screws, resurfacing and drilling instruments or other surgical devices.
The use of orthopedic fastening devices, such as bone screws, has greatly aided the medical field in the treatment of bone fractures, as well as enabling the ever increasing use of orthopedic implants and orthopedic appliances. With respect to the treatment of bone fractures, it is sometimes generally necessary to surgically reposition the fragmented bone members in an atomically acceptable orientation, and then fasten the bone members together in order to facilitate the healing process. Bone screws are typically employed in stabilization procedures used to treat bone fractures.
When a bone screw is employed, either to fasten two or more members together or to secure an orthopedic appliance (e.g. bone plate) to a bone, alignment and proper orientation is critical. To ensure proper alignment, a guide wire is often installed along the desired trajectory for the bone screw. The cannulated bone screw is then disposed over the guide wire. The guide wire functions to guide the cannulated bone screw in its proper direction. After the insertion of the bone screw, the guide wire is removed from the joined components.
Typically, a cannulated drive is used to drive the cannulated screw over the guide wire. After the cannulated screw has been deposited over the guide wire, the guide wire is typically threaded through a cannulated driver. As the driver rotates the screw, it is intended that the guide wire will rotate within the driver. Unfortunately, occasionally the guide wire will get caught or hung up on the driven screw. As a result, the wire which has been deposited through the cannulated screw is likewise rotated, thus allowing the guide wire to further insert itself into the patient. This creates a situation where it is possible that the moving guide wire could pierce some part of the patient, resulting in unnecessary pain or soft tissue damage.
Other uses of guide wires are also known for other surgical procedures. For example, natural joints may undergo degenerative changes due to a variety of etiologies. When these degenerative changes become so far advanced and irreversible, it may ultimately become necessary to replace a natural joint with a prosthetic joint. During the orthopedic procedure, it is generally known in the art to prepare either side of the joints natural material using guide wire guided cutting devices such cannulated drill bits and driven cannulated reamers. However, here again, the current prior art cannulated drill bits and reamers and associated surgical components may suffer from many disadvantages associated with the inadvertent driving of the guide wire as discussed above. What is needed then is a capturing guide wire surgical instrument that does not suffer from the above-mentioned disadvantages.
The present invention provides in one embodiment a driven surgical driver for driving a cannulated bone screw into the bone. This screw is disposed over a guide wire. The driven surgical driver is cannulated and is coupled to a driver which has an actuatable clamp capable of clamping the guide wire to prevent undesirable further insertion of the guide wire into the bone.
In one embodiment, a driven surgical driver is disclosed that has an internal clamp which clamps a guide wire. The wire clamp is configured to hold the guide wire a fixed distance from the tissue while a medical device is driven distally away from the wire clamp by a driven shaft.
In another embodiment, an apparatus for driving a medical device having a guide wire clasping driven member which maintains the length of a guide wire coupled to a tissue. The apparatus for driving a medical device has a rotatable shaft configured to be coupled to the medical device and a wire clamp which clamps the wire at a fixed distance from the tissue. A driver is coupled to the rotatable drive shaft.
In another embodiment of the invention, a driven member is provided. The driven member has a proximal end which is configured to drive a fastener. On its proximal end, the member has a quick connect member which allows the driven member to be quickly coupled to a driver. Disposed between the proximal and distal ends is a clamp which is configured to fixedly couple a surgical guide wire.
Further disclosed is a method for rotating a medical device with respect to a biological tissue having a guide wire. The method includes providing a medical device and a guide wire clasping member having a driven shaft and a wire clamp. The wire clamp is configured to hold the guide wire at a fixed distance from the tissue. The method further includes positioning the guide wire clamping member relative to the medical device, and clamping the guide wire at a fixed distance from the tissue. Forces are applied to the draft shaft which applies forces to the medical device.
Further areas of applicability of the present invention will become apparent from the detailed description provided hereinafter. It should be understood that the detailed description and specific examples, while indicating the preferred embodiment of the invention, are intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.